“You know, with everycreature else all paired up, it’s just you and Silverstream now…”
Smolder’s words pounded against the interior of Gallus’s skull. While the dragon and Ocellus were escorted to Headmare Twilight’s office for what would probably be a very interesting conversation about the drawing Ocellus had drawn on the chalkboard, the rest of the students were excused to return to their dorms. It was a long, awkwardly silent walk back to the dorms building. Once there, Gallus and Sandbar entered their room while Yona and Silverstream went to theirs. Gallus watched Sandbar give Yona a little wave of his hoof, and then closed the door.
“Well,” Gallus said once he and his roommate were in private, sitting in the middle of the room. “That was… something.”
“Tell me about it,” Sandbar said, his face still red as he hopped up onto his bunk to sit. From the look on his face alone, Gallus could tell he was already imagining doing the same things with Yona that Smolder and Ocellus were already doing, and was kinda horrified but also curious.
“I don’t think I need to. You were there,” Gallus quipped, pointing a claw at his friend.
“I know, I know, but still… they apparently did it.”
Gallus looked around the room for something to occupy himself with, and found a bouncy ball. As he bounced it in and out of his claw, he replied, “It’s not surprising, you know. We already knew they were dating.”
“Yeah, but it’s Smolder and Ocellus. I always figured that Ocellus would be too muzzle deep into a book to have time for that sort of stuff.” Sandbar mused, laying down on his bunk and staring at the underside of Gallus’s bed. “Smolder is always ready for anything, but Ocellus always so cautious about what she does.”
Looking away from his ball but still bouncing it, Gallus glanced at the pony. “Are you jealous that they beat you and Yona to doing it first?”
“What?” Sandbar’s head shot up so fast that he clonked it on Gallus’s bunk. “Ow!” Rubbing his head with a hoof, he answered, “No, I just meant that of us six, they wouldn’t be the first. If anything, I thought you and Silverstream would.”
Gallus caught the bouncy ball in a talon, whirling his head around at Sandbar. “What you mean by that?”
“I know about your drawings as a seagriffon. About your drawings of you as a seagriffon with Silverstream as a seapony.”
Gallus’s blue feathers turned the slightest bit sky blue. “How did you-?”
“Dude, come on. We share the same room. I’ve lived here long enough to know all about the hidden holes, like the one in the desk where you keep a journal belonging to one Bluefeather G.” Though Sandbar wore a serious expression, his voice carried an undertone of friendly teasing.
Gallus sighed, returning his focus to the bouncy ball. “Welp, looks like I’m gonna have to ask Smolder to burn some old papers I don’t need anymore.”
“Don’t be like that,” Sandbar said, climbing off his bed and joining his roommate on the floor. “If you like Silverstream so much, why don’t you just ask her out already?” He took the bouncy ball from Gallus, and started bouncing it against the wall. Whenever it came back, he hit it again, like playing a one-pony game of ping-pong.
“What makes you think I want to?” The bouncy ball bounded toward Gallus on one occasion, and he swatted it back at the wall gently. From there it went back and forth between the wall and the two boys.
“You haven’t drawn me, or Smolder, or Yona, or even Ocellus in sea forms. Only you and her. I think that implies you want some alone time with her, and the only way you can do that is going where the rest of us can’t.” Sandbar paused, amending his statement, “Ocellus probably could just transform, but she doesn’t go in the water much.”
“Even if I did want what you say I do,” Gallus challenged, doing a trick shot by using his tail instead of a talon. “What makes you think it would work out? She’s so cheerful all the time, and I’m a downer; she’s a princess, and I’m just some nobody. If we even tried anything, you know what kind of scandal that could cause?”
Sandbar gave Gallus a critical look. “Wow. For someone who claims he doesn’t want to get together with Silverstream, you sure have put a lot of thought into it.”
“I’m the sarcastic one, remember? I find all the ways to poke holes in ideas,” said Gallus with a roll of his eyes.
Frowning at his friend’s answer, Sandbar got to his hooves and went to exit the room.
“Where are you going?” Gallus raised an eyebrow.
“It just sounds like this is something you two need to work out.” Sandbar put his hoof to the doorknob.
Catching the bouncy ball so it wouldn’t bounce haphazardly when the pony opened the door, Gallus replied, “There’s nothing to work out.”
“I think Silverstream would disagree. Look, I’m happy with Yona, and Smolder and Ocellus are clearly happy with each other. I want you and Silverstream to be happy too.” Without saying anymore, Sandbar left the room, leaving Gallus alone.
A few minutes later, Silverstream opened the door and poked her head into the room.
“Hi,” she greeted quietly.
Gallus caught the ball as Silverstream’s entrance knocked it off course. “Hey.”
“Sandbar said you wanted to talk?” Silverstream stepped inside, and closed the door with one of her back legs.
The griffon shrugged. “It was more Sandbar’s idea. He thought we needed to talk about it.”
“Talk about what?” Silverstream cocked her head, confused.
“You know, it? What happened just twenty minutes ago in the library?” Gallus hinted.
“Oh, that!” Silverstream realized with a nod. She paused, finding something to say. “Yeah, that was really… interesting. I sure can’t say I’ve ever seen a drawing of a changeling and a dragon doing that.”
“Same,” Gallus agreed. And he saw a lot of crude things while living in Griffonstone for most of his life.
They sat on the floor of the boys’ room quietly for a few minutes, staring at each other and believing the other would have more to say on the matter. Eventually, Silverstream got back up to leave.
“I should get back to my room. Get back to studying, you know?” The hippogriff turned around and reached for the doorknob.
Before she could touch it, Gallus squeezed his eyes shut and said, “Wait.”
Silverstream peered back at him curiously.
Sighing, Gallus rolled the ball aside, but kept his gaze on it. “There’s more.”
“Really? What is it?” She sat down again.
“You know how Smolder made that comment about we’re the only two friends in the group not hooked up yet?” he asked.
“Yeah,” she answered slowly, wondering where he was going with this.
“Well, Smolder wasn’t that far off the mark,” he said, eventually making eye contact with her.
Silverstream gasped. “You mean…?”
“I… I like you, okay?” He struggled to get the confession out. “I like you as much as our friends l-love each other.”
“Gallus,” Silverstream began to say.
He waved her off, looking away. “I know, I know it’s stupid. It’d never work. We’re too different. You could probably fill a million balloons with as much energy as you have, and I’d only pop them. You’re royalty and super rich. Me? I’m an orphan, and orphans like me hardly ever have a bit to our name. Just… just forget I said anything.”
“Are you kidding?!”
“Oof!”
Gallus was suddenly glomped by a very excitable hippogriff. He felt like that time Sandbar accidentally bucked him in the gut in gym class.
“I like you too!” She practically crowed, nuzzling into him.
Just as he regained his breath, her words sunk in, and he glanced down at her in surprise. “Wait, seriously?”
“Yup! Ever since you helped me face my fear of the Storm King in the school catacombs,” Silverstream explained, finally pulling away so she could look at him directly.
Gallus blinked at her, stunned. “Huh.”
Silverstream raised an eyebrow. “What?”
“That’s actually the same day I started liking you,” Gallus admitted, rubbing the back of his head with a claw. He chuckled awkwardly. “What are the odds, right?”
She giggled along with him more genuinely. “Yeah, for real.”
They sat in silence for a few minutes, unsure what to say now that their feelings were out there.
“So, are you going to ask me out on a date?” Silverstream inquired, a slight tease in her voice.
“I was thinking about it,” Gallus replied, picking up the tone and sending it back. “I’ll have to scrounge up some money first, maybe borrow a little from Sandbar if necessary, depending on what we want to do for our first date.”
Silverstream waved a claw at him. “Oh, no need to do that. I’ll pay.”
Gallus raised a talon to interject. “But shouldn’t I be the one to-?”
“Gallus, it’s okay,” Silverstream assured him. “I don’t mind.”
The griffon couldn’t help but smile gratefully. “Thanks, Silver.”
Smiling back, Silverstream reached up and unclasped her transformation necklace. “And who knows? If this works out, you could be wearing one of these one day.” She reached around Gallus’s neck to clasp the necklace around it.
Touched by the gesture, Gallus felt the pearl shard with his claw. “Maybe one day…”
Nodding, Silverstream leaned in, puckering her beak. Seeing what she was doing, Gallus copied her and met her halfway.
When their beaks connected, it was like they could feel friendship evolving to another level inside. Like the Tree of Harmony was linking them on a deeper degree. Warmth neither ever knew before exploded within. Closing their eyes, they sunk further into bliss.
It wasn’t long until there was a click at the door, and their eyes shot open, beaks still in lip-lock, to see Smolder and Ocellus staring at them.
Apparently the lecture went quicker than expected. To think their relationship was off to a great start too. Between the kiss and Silverstream’s transformation necklace around Gallus’s neck, the evidence was condemning.
“Uh, whoops?” Smolder sheepishly offered.
“GET OUT!”
Author's Note
This is probably the most risky thing I've ever written. I couldn't help myself since Gallustream is my favorite Young Six ship, and it was almost a crime that no story for this pairing had been written for and added to this little collection in months.
For some reason, I just imagine when Smolder and Ocellus walked in on Gallus and Silverstream, Gallus would be wearing Silverstream's necklace, which would make the situation harder to deny.
My thanks to Trinary for approving of this sequel and for pre-reading it.
